Warriors’ Kerr delivers message: Enjoy sports but keep an eye on the world

Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr speaks at a news conference before the team's NBA basketball game against the San Antonio Spurs in San Francisco, Friday, Nov. 1, 2019. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Photo: Jeff Chiu / Associated Press

These are confusing times.

We’re plunging into the heart of the NFL playoffs, with all kinds of great matchups and compelling stories. Meanwhile, the threat of war looms.

What should we do? Should we wallow in football and ignore the real world? Or put aside the fun and games as long as our globe is as unstable as a lopsided basketball?

Steve Kerr has offered a suggestion. Since the Warriors’ head coach continues to guide his team, we can assume he still sees a value in sports. But Kerr also urges sports fans to not lock out the real world. There is room for both.

Before a game last week, Kerr was asked why he has been so busy tweeting about political matters.

“I’m worried we’re going to end up in another war,” Kerr explained. “I try to use my Twitter platform to remind people to do their homework before we all blindly wave the flag and get ourselves into another mess like we did in Iraq.”

Remember Iraq? The Gulf War? The U.S. and allies began bombing Iraq on Jan. 16, 1991. The Super Bowl was 11 days later in Tampa.

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I was there. Fear was in the air. Security was super tight. Military helicopters hovered over the stadium. The halftime show, featuring New Kids on the Block, was not televised by ABC. Instead the network aired a war update with Peter Jennings.

I camped out in the media tent in front of the TVs, one eye on the game and one eye on the war. TV gave us live feeds from Saudi Arabia of American troops watching the Super Bowl. We watched them watching us.

On the grass, Scott Norwood missed a kick, the Giants won. On the sand, the bombing continued, nobody won.

Three decades later, here we are again, heading to Florida for another Super Bowl while heading to the desert for another possible conflict.

Scott Ostler has been a sports columnist at the San Francisco Chronicle since 1991. He has covered five Olympics for The Chronicle, as well as one soccer World Cup and numerous World Series, Super Bowls and NBA Finals.

Though he started in sports and is there now, Scott took a couple of side trips into the real world for The Chronicle. For three years he wrote a daily around-town column, and for one year, while still in sports, he wrote a weekly humorous commentary column.

He has authored several books and written for many national publications. Scott has been voted California Sportswriter of the Year 13 times, including six times while at The Chronicle. He moved to the Bay Area from Southern California, where he worked for the Los Angeles Times, the National Sports Daily and the Long Beach Press-Telegram.